Govt moves to ensure BBS independence

Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury stressed the need for transparency, accuracy and credibility in official statistics, saying the government is moving to make the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) fully independent and free from interference to support evidence-based policymaking.
He said the government had already taken decisions to ensure the independence of the national statistical agency and was working to implement them.
“The most important asset on a government’s balance sheet is data. Without accurate data, there is no scope for moving forward,” he said at a discussion marking National Statistics Day 2026 at the BBS auditorium in Dhaka on Sunday.
The Statistics and Informatics Division and the BBS jointly organised the programme under the theme “Reliable and Accessible Statistics: The Foundation of Sustainable Development and Planning”.
State Minister for Planning Zonayed Saki, Prime Minister’s Adviser on Finance and Planning Dr Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir, Professor Dr Syed Shahadat Hossain of Dhaka University, who is also president of the Bangladesh Statistical Association, and BIDS Director General Dr AK Enamul Haque also attended the discussion.
The programme was chaired by Statistics and Informatics Division Secretary Md Firoz Sarker.
BBS Director General Md Shamimul Haque delivered the welcome address, while BBS Director Kabir Uddin Ahmed presented the bureau’s modernisation plans.
Khosru said reliable statistics were essential for sustainable development, effective planning and sound policymaking. 
Linking political democracy with economic democratisation, he stressed the need to empower the BBS and ensure its independence to produce trustworthy information.
He warned that manipulating official statistics for political or administrative purposes would ultimately harm the government itself.
“If a government manipulates data, it is deceiving itself. It is essentially making itself believe something that is not true,” he said, adding that such practices undermined the effectiveness of government policies and programmes.
The minister said a forensic examination of historical data was underway to identify inconsistencies and understand the underlying problems.
He said the exercise was not intended merely to criticise the previous government but to establish the facts needed to reform the statistical system.
“We have to go deep into the disease to find a solution,” he said.
Khosru also stressed the need to implement existing policies rather than merely formulate new ones, describing implementation as a major challenge for Bangladesh.
Highlighting the importance of digital infrastructure, he said a modern statistical system required strong digital foundations. Referring to his recent visit to South Korea, he emphasised the role of digital infrastructure in improving government services and citizens’ access to information.
He also referred to the proposed “One Citizen, One Wallet, One Card” system, saying reliable and integrated information would be essential for its transparent implementation.
Calling for wider access to official statistics and research findings, Khosru said open access would encourage public scrutiny, feedback and independent research.
He said the government wanted to make research facilities and statistical information available online.
“Data may be collected through government initiatives, but its ownership belongs to everyone,” he said.
The minister thanked BBS officials and employees, particularly field-level workers, for their contributions.
He said the government was also addressing manpower shortages and other operational challenges facing the bureau, with some measures already taken and further steps planned.
Scientific approach to statistics stressed
Prime Minister’s Political Adviser and Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Planning Ministry Zahir Uddin Swapon said data collection, interpretation and use in policymaking must follow scientific methods.
Drawing an analogy involving pharmaceutical companies, doctors and diagnostic reports, he explained how interference in data collection and interpretation could lead to misleading conclusions.
He stressed that the entire process, from collecting raw data to transforming it into knowledge and applying it to policy decisions, must remain scientific and independent.
Swapon described reliable statistics as a vital tool for national decision-making, saying their effective use could be more important than a country’s military strength or geographical size.
He urged officials and policymakers to adopt a systematic approach to statistical analysis when implementing national development plans, including the government’s long-term vision and initiatives involving artificial intelligence.
Restoring public trust a priority
State Minister for Planning Zonayed Saki said restoring public confidence in official statistics was a major priority for the government.
He said reliable data were essential for assessing economic and social conditions, identifying development gaps and determining where policy adjustments were needed.
Saki said the government had commissioned a forensic review of historical statistics, including gross domestic product (GDP) data, with support from the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS), to identify inconsistencies and establish a credible basis for future planning.
He said the government had decided against manipulating official information, warning that inaccurate statistics could lead to misguided policy decisions.
The state minister said Consumer Price Index (CPI) data were now being collected using tablets and published directly through a database.
The figures no longer required the finance minister’s signature before publication, a change intended to prevent political interference, he said.
Saki also stressed the need to make official statistics accessible to researchers, students and institutions beyond government agencies.
He said the government was developing technological infrastructure to allow users at home and abroad to access and analyse statistical information.
He also highlighted plans to establish integrated citizen information systems to improve data collection and support evidence-based policymaking.